The Clause Family
Jo visits the Clause family in Studio City, California where Lorie and Ken have two children: 11-year-old son Brandon, and 8-year-old daughter Caila. Brandon and Caila are very disrespectful and manipulative towards their parents. They back-talk, swear and throw tantrums like a toddler. Lorie is a pushover while Ken is too laid back. Ken also fears that he'll never have a close relationship with his kids. Can Jo help Lorie and Ken control their "tween terrors"? Recap When Jo sees the Clauses' DVD reel, she notices Brandon and Caila's misbehavior, and how Lorie is a pushover while Ken tunes out his kids' tantrums. Lorie says, "I feel like we've lost the battle for Brandon and Caila." During Jo's observation, Lori walks the kids home from school. She sees how Caila and Brandon treat their mother like a pack mule and make her carry their backpacks home. At home, Caila and Brandon don't do their homework and by 11:00 at night, they're still arguing about it. At the Parent Meeting, Jo tells Ken and Lorie, "You can’t function as a normal parent everyday. There are no expectations.” It's also brought up that the kids have privileges, but no chores. When Jo brings up homework time, she says it was "absolutely ridiculous." Lorie agrees that the family needs change. On the day Jo's teaching begins, Caila starts the day off by throwing a tantrum over not wanting to get dressed. After Lorie struggles to get Caila to listen, Jo steps in and tells Caila to get dressed. Caila complies and does what she's told. According to Jo, “''I don’t think Caila has ever been spoken to firmly. She’s only been molly-coddled or yelled at." As Jo is speaking, Lorie sneaks into "molly-coddle" Caila. According to Lorie, she does it because she feels guilty that her daughter is sad. Jo makes it clear to Lorie that she needs to take it seriously with her. Jo later takes Lorie to throw stones (which have words on them) off a cliff which helps her lighten her load, making her strong enough to take on her own kids. Jo comes up with privilege strips for Caila and Brandon. Every time the kids act up, Lori will tear off one of their privileges from a chart. According to Lorie, "''It’s our job as parents to follow through. I anticipate a lot of kicking and a lot of screaming.” Meanwhile, Ken and Brandon spend some father-son time at a gymnasium. They later decide to make their outings a regular part of their lives. Before Jo leaves the Clauses for a few days, she tells them, "Trust one another, work together, communication." The next day, Caila throws another tantrum when Lorie refuses to carry her backpack when they walk home from school, but she's able to carry her backpack by herself. Later on, Lorie negotiates privilege removal with Brandon which makes her undermine herself. That night, Lori tells Brandon that he was up until midnight doing homework. He replies by yelling "Now you're just making this a whole game!' Then, when Brandon hits Lorie with a video game controller, She ends up breaking down in tears and saying, "They won't respect me! I'm not strong enough!" When Jo returns to the Clauses' house, she creates a homework station for Brandon and Caila. Jo gives Ken a prep talk before he supervises the kids' homework and it ends up going well. After Jo leaves, Ken says, "It’s great for the kids to see the program bearing fruit." Lorie (who is no longer a pushover) says, "This is a new beginning. This is my life now." Family Names *Ken Clause (Father) *Lori Clause (Mother) *Brandon Clause (Son) *Caila Clause (Daughter) Category:Season 4 episodes Category:Episodes in California Category:Families with Two Children